Tufting mechanism for sewing machines



Feb. 4; @4L W. F. scHMxEDEL TUFTING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed Nov.. 9, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 w h 713V NTOR 1' A BY mma@ Feb. 4, 1941. w. P scHMxEDEL TUFTING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES Filed NONI. 9, 1939 2 SheeS--SheeI 2 Patented Feb. 4, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TUFT'ING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES William F. Schmiedel, Oshkosh, Wis., assignor to Deltox Rug Company, Oshkosh, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin This invention relates to improvements in tufting mechanisms for sewing machines.

Standard sewing machines provide for a limited reciprocation of the needle through the fabric and prior tufting mechanisms for sewing machines have been limited in the length of tufts attainable by virtue of the limited downward movement of the .sewing machine needle.

A primary object of the present invention is m to provide a tufting mechanism adapted for incorporation in a sewing machine head and capable of producing tufts or piles on a fabric of considerably greater length than those produced by prior machines of this class.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a tufting mechanism for sewing machines which, while susceptible of producing relatively long loops and tufts, is readily adjustable so that the length of the tufts may be varied, within certain limits.v

A further object of the invention is to provide a tufting mechanism for sewing machines having a screw-like member to engage the yarn and to pull it in elongated loops below the lowermost position of the needle, prior to severance of the respective loops.

A further object of the invention is to provide a tufting mechanism adaptable to a standard form of sewing machine and requiring relatively little modification of the sewing machine proper. A further object of the invention is to provide a tufting mechanism of the character described wherein the looper receives its motion directly from the main drive of the sewing machine, while the cutting instrumentality receives its power from an independent source, thereby relieving the main drive of the machine of an undue operating load and strain.

A further object of the invention is to provide a tufting mechanism wherein the cutter is susceptible of adjustments in all directions with the advantage that it may be adjusted very minutely relative to the work to properly position it for different types of yarn or different lengthened tufts, and with the further advantage that as the knife edge wears down from usage, this may be compensated for by adjustment of the cutter axis.

A further object of the invention is to provide a tufting mechanism having a revolving circular cutter mounted on a relatively fixed axis and arranged so that the formed loops are broughtl is of very simple construction, is strong and durable, and which is well adapted for the purposes set forth.

With the above and other objects in view, `the invention consists of the improved tufting mechanism for sewing machines, and its parts and combinations, as set forth in the claims, and all equivalents thereof.

In the accompanying drawings in which the same reference` characters indicate the same 10 parts in all of the views:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary end elevation of a sewing machine showing the improved tufting mechanism incorporated therein, the base portion of the machine being shown in transverse 15 section and the needle being shown in a lowered position;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary, detail, transverse, sectional view with the needle and looper screw in different positions from those shown in Fig. 1; 20

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary, detail, sectional View taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, detail, sectional View showing the adjustable mounting for the cutter shaft; 25

Fig. 5 is a detail sectional View taken on line 5 5 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a bottom view of the sewing machine and tufting mechanism.

Referring now more particularly to the draw- 30 ings, it will appear that the sewing machine, with which the improved tufting mechanism is incorporated, includes a base portion I0 having a head I2 at one vend in which is housed the usual operating mechanism including a vertical 35 shaft I3. The lower end of said shaft carries a bevel gear I4 meshing with a bevel gear l5 on a suitably journaled, revoluble shaft I6. One end of an angularly extended shaft I1 has a universal joint connection, as at I8, with a stud element 40 20. The stud element 20 is integral with the univ-ersaI joint connection I8 and extends into the socket of an enlargement I6 of the shaft I6. The stud element 20 is held in said socket byset screws 2| which may be loosened to per- 45 mit longitudinal movement of the stud element 20,`whereb y the effective length of the shaft I'I may be varied, Ito compensate lfor adjustments in other portions of the mechanism, as will hereafter appear. 50

The other end of the shaft I1 has a universal joint connection., as at I9, with a suitably supported forward shaft 22 which carries a bevel gear 23 at its outer end. The gear 23 engages another bevel gear 24 on one end of a looper 55 screw 25. Said looper screw is journaled for rotation in a tubular sleeve 26 depending from a block 21 which is vertically adjustably mounted below the forward end of the base l0. As is shown best in Fig. 3 the block 21 is of an irregular shape and it is held to the base I0 by screws 28. However, a shim 29 is interposed between the -base and the inner face of the block. By varying the thickness of the shim, the block and parts carried thereby may be raised and lowered relative to the base of the machine. This is of importance in controlling the length of loops to be formed by the tufting mechanism. Also, when the vertical position of the block is varied the shaft I1 -must be permitted to shorten or elongate by movement of the stud 2l) in the socket I6', as heretofore mentioned.

Above the forward end of the base I0 there are mounted the usual fabric pressure foot 30 carried by a movable rod 3|, and the needle carrying rod 32. The fabric pressur-e foot 30 is of bifurcated form and a needle 33, depended from the needle rod 32, reciprocates between the bifurcations of the foot 30. The foot 30 moves so as to alternately engage and release the work 34. The foot is elevated and releases the work at a time when fabric feeding feet 35, below the work 34, operate to advance the work for the next stitch. Said feet 34 are operated in the conventional manner from the mechanism in the sewing machine head. Included in said mechanism are cranks 36 and 31 connected with a hub 38 on the main driven shaft I6. Said cranks move rock arms 39 and 40 whereby longitudinal rods 4 I and 42 are oscillated. At the opposite ends of said rods reciprocatory motion is imparted to the feed dogs 35 by connections 43 and 44. The movement of the needle 33 is, of course, through and relative to a slot in a work supporting plate 45.

The heretofore mentioned block 21 is adjustably mounted below` the work supporting plate 45 and its sleeve 25 is carried in a manner so that the looper screw 25 is directed toward the needle. The outer end of the looper screw is helical and spiral, as at 45, and the extremity thereof is hook-like and pointed, as at 41. Said extremity of the looper screw is positioned immediately adjacent a side of the needle 33 when the latter is in its lowermost position.

Extending longitudinally of an end portion of the base l0 and below the same,is a cutter drive shaft 48 which is rotatably housed within a supported sleeve 49. An end of said shaft adjacent the needle equipped end of the sewing machine has fast thereon a pulley wheel 5l! engaged by a belt 5l extending to a suitable source of power (not shown). The other end of said shaft 48 has fast thereon a circular or disc revolving cutter 52. The upper peripheral portions of said cutter are adapted to extend into a slot or recess 53 in a wall of the looper screw sleeve 25. The intermediate portion of the sleeve 49 and the cutter shaft is longitudinally adjustably embraced by the U-shaped end portion 54 of a slotted arm 55, and by a complementary clamping bracket 58. Normally the sleeve 49 is maintained firmly within said end portion 54 by the bracket 55, However, when the bracket is released, by a bolt 51, the sleeve, with the shaft 48 therein and the cutter 52 on the end of the shaft, may be moved or adjusted to provide for minute adjustments of the cutter relative to the slot 53. The cutter 52 is secured to the shaft 48 by being clamped between adjacent face portions of a boss 58 and a cap 59. Loosening or tightening of said cap causes slight adjustments of the cutter axially of its shaft, and with said cap removed the cutter may be readily removed for replacement or sharpening.

Depending from an intermediate portion of the base In is a lug 60. This lug is engaged by another portion of the slotted arm and the latter is adjustably secured to the lug by a bolt 6| having an end threaded into the lug and having its shank extending through the slot in said arm 55. The bolt has a nut 52 on its outer end which, when loosened, permits the entire arm and parts carried thereby including the cutter shaft 48 and the cutter 52, to be swung arcuately in a vertical plane. This permits adjustment of the cutter upwardly or downwardly, depending on the position of the looper screw and the length of tufts desired. Also, by virtue of the slot in the arm 55, said arm may be shifted longitudinally and provides for another desirable form of adjustment.

The pieceY of fabric 34 of a predetermined size to form a rug or other article of manufacture, is positioned on the work supporting plate of the base IEB. The strand of yarn 63, or other material to be used, is threaded through the needle 33. When the yarn is sewed through the material, a line of loop stitching is formed, and the lcops thereof are first stretched or elongated by the looper screw 25 and are then cut by the cutter 52 to form a pile of relatively long length.

In operation, the needle 33 having the strand 53 threaded therethrough reciprocates down- Wardly through the fabric and through the needle slot in the work-supporting plate. When the needle is in a raised position the feeding feet 35 operate to advance the fabric for successive steps. The drive for the looper screw 25 has heretofore been described and it will be evident that said looper screw, while the machine is in operation, continuously revolves. When the needle carries the yarn through the fabric and reaches a lowered position, such as is shown in Fig. l, a loop of yarn is formed thereby. This loop is considerably shorter than the length of the tufts which it is desired to attain, it being obvious that the length of the loop, at this stage, is limited by the downward travel of the needle. The rotation of the looper screw is synchronized with movements of the needle in a manner so that when the needle is in the down position of Fig. l the pointed end 41 of the looper screw will be in an upper position immediately adjacent the side of the needle and the further rotation of the looper screw will then cause said end portion 41 and the helix 46 to enter into the loop. Next, the needle commences its upward reciprocation, but at the same time rotation of the looper screw continues and the caught loop is pulled and extended considerably below the original point of engagement. In this manner the loop of yarn is materially elongated and this is made possible by the fact that when the needle moves upwardly the yarn slackens. The spiral of the looper screw, as the screw continues turning, carries the extended loop inwardly until it is engaged by and surrounds an intermediate portion of the sleeve 25 in which the looper screw revolves. During continued reciprocations of the needle a plurality of loops are thus caught and elongated and are forced rearwardly along the body of the sleeve 2S. The circular cutter 52 is of course continuously revolving and when an inner loop is pushed sufliciently far onto the shank of the sleeve it will ultimately be engaged,

at its lower portion, by a peripheral portion of the revolving cutter and will be severed, as shown in Fig. 2, to thereby provide relatively long tufts on the fabric.

'I'he rotary cutter is driven by a separate source of power, and therefore the main drive of the sewing machine, which operates the looper screw, is not subjected to undue strain or overload.

The rotary cutter may be continuously revolved at a high rate of speed and does not dull quickly g because diiferent edge portions thereof are continuously presented to the work. As previously mentioned the cutter is mounted in a manner so that it may be subjected to minute adjustments. 'Ihe block 21 which carries the looper screw may also be raised or lowered relative to the base of the machine by interposing therebetween shims of different thicknesses. In this way the lengths of the relatively long tufts may be varied for different work. In most of the available tufting attachments the tufts produced were limited in length by the amount of downward movement of the needle and tufts of from 3/16 to of an inch were the longest obtainable. With the present mechanism tufts of anywhere from one to two inches in length can be obtained.

As shown particularly in Figs. l and 2 of the drawings, the needle 33 in its reciprocations, is prevented from being deflected by a needle guard 65 which is adjustably secured to the machine frame by a bolt G6. Said guard can be adjusted in accordance with the position of the looper screw to adapt it for different length loop formations and is arranged so that it engages and alines the needle should the needle be deflected in passing through the fabric, thus preventing damage to the mechanism or needle.

From the foregoing description it will be seen 4o that the improved tufting mechanism is of simple and novel construction, and requires a minimum of modification to a standard sewing machine, and is well adapted for the purposes described.

What is claimed as the invention is:

l. In a sewing machine tufting mechanism, a revoluble looper member having a hooked end and a helical portion inwardly thereof, a stationary sleeve into which the inner end portion 50 of the looper member extends and having a recess in a wall portion thereof, and a cutter extending into said sleeve recess to sever a loop engaged by the hooked end of the looper and propelled rearwardly by the helical portion to ex- 55 tend about said sleeve, .the cutter being movable from a iixed axis.

2. A tufting mechanism, comprising a reciprocatable needle, a stationary sleeve having an opening on one side, a revoluble looper in said 60 sleeve and extending out of one end thereof, the extended portion of said looper being helical and having a hooked extremity, and a cutter extending into said sleeve opening.

3. A tufting mechanism, comprising a needle reciprocatable in a vertical plane, a stationary sleeve mounted horizontally at right angles to the needle, a revoluble looper in said sleeve and extending out of one end thereof, the extended portion of said looper being helical and having a hooked extremity, and a cutter extending into said sleeve opening.

4. A tufting mechanism, comprising a needle reciprocatable in a vertical plane, a stationary sleeve mounted horizontally at right angles to 75 the needle and having a lower wall in a plane substantially below the lowermost position of the needle, said wall portion of the sleeve having a recess therein, a revoluble looper in said sleeve and extending out of one end thereof, the extended portion of said looper being helical and having a hooked extremity adjacent the lowermost position of the needle, and a cutter extending into said sleeve recess.

5. A tufting mechanism, comprising a needle reciprocatable in a vertical plane, a stationary sleeve having a lower Wall portion in a plane substantially below the lowermost position of the needle, said wall portion of the sleeve having a recess therein, the sleeve being vertically adjustable, a revoluble looper journaled in said sleeve and extending horizontally at right angles to the needle, said looper extending out of the sleeve and the extended portion of the looper being helical and terminating in a hooked extremity adjacent the lowermost position of the needle, a cutter extending into said sleeve recess, and means for adjusting the position of said cutter.

6. A tufting mechanism, comprising a needle reciprocatable in a vertical plane, a stationary sleeve having a lov/er wall portion in a plane substantially below the lowermost position of the needle, said wall portion of the sleeve having a recess therein, a revoluble looper journaled in said sleeve and extending toward the needle, said looper also extending out of the sleeve and said extending portion being of helical and spiral formation with an off-set terminal adjacent the lowermost position of the needle, a cutter extending into said sleeve recess, said cutter having arcuate movement from a Iixed center, means to drive the cutter, and means to simultaneously reciprocate the needle and revolve the looper.

'7. A tufting mechanism for a sewing machine having a reciprocating needle for penetrating a fabric and carrying a strand which is passed through the fabric by the needle, a stationary sleeve mounted below the fabric and having a wall extending below the lowermost position of the needle, there being a recess in said wall of the sleeve, a revoluble looper having its major portion journaled in said sleeve, an extended portion of the looper being of screw-like form with a terminal adjacent the lowermost position of the needle, rotation of the looper causing it to catch loops from the needle and to elongate the same and to move the loops inwardly on the looper toward the sleeve with earlier formed loops moving rearwardly onto the sleeve, and a cutter extending into said sleeve recess and operating to sever an inner loop on the sleeve.

8. A tufting mechanism for a sewing machine having a reciprocating needle for penetrating a fabric and carrying a strand which is passed through the fabric by the needle, a stationary sleeve mounted below the fabric and having a wall extending below the lowermost position of the needle, there being a recess in said wall of the sleeve, a revoluble looper having its major portion journaled in said sleeve, an extended portion of the looper being of screw-like form with a terminal adjacent the lowermost position of the needle, rotation of the looper causing it to catch loops from the needle and to elongate the same and to move the loops inwardly on the looper toward the sleeve with earlier formed loops moving rearwardly onto the sleeve, a cutter extending into said sleeve recess and operating to sever an inner loop on the sleeve, means for moving the cutter, and means for simultaneously reciprocating the needle and revolving the looper.

9. A tufting mechanism for a sewing machine having a reciprocating needle for penetrating a fabric and carrying a strand which is passed through the fabric by the needle, a stationary sl-eeve mounted below the fabric and having a wall extending below the lowermost position of the needle, there being a recess in said wall of the sleeve, a revoluble looper having its major portion journaled in said sleeve, an extended portion of the looper being of screw-like form with a terminal adjacent the lowermost position of the needle, rotation of the looper causing it to catch loops from the needle and to elongate the same and to move the loops inwardly on the looper toward the sleeve with earlier formed loops moving rearwardly onto the sleeve, a cutter extending into said sleeve recess and operating to succes.- sively sever loops advanced rearwardly o-n the sleeve to form elongated pile members, and means for operating the needle and looper.

10. A tufting mechanism `for a sewing machine having a reciprocating needle for penetrating a fabric and carrying a strand which is passed through the fabric by the needle, a stationary sleeve mounted below the fabric and having a wall extending below the lowermost position of the needle, there being a recess in said wall of the sleeve, a revoluble looper having its major portion journaled in said sleeve, an extended portion of the looper being of screw-like form with a terminal adjacent the lowermost position of the needle, rotation of the looper causing it to catch loops from the needle and to elongate the same and to move the loops inwardly on the looper toward the sleeve with earlier formed loops moving rearwardly onto the sleeve, a cutter disc extending into said sleeve recess and operable therein from a fixed axis to successively sever the elongated loops transferred onto the sleeve, and means for reciprocating the needle and revolving the looper.

1l. A tufting mechanism for a sewing machine having a reciprocating needle for penetrating a fabric and carrying a strand which is passed through the fabric by the needle, a stationary sleeve mounted below the fabric and having a wall extending below the lowermost position of the needle, there being a recess in said Wall of the sleeve, a revoluble looper having its major portion journaled in said sleeve, an extended portion of the looper being of screw-like form with a terminal adjacent the lowermost position of the needle, rotation of the looper causing it to catch loops from the needle and to elongate the same and to move the loops inwardly on the looper toward the sleeve with earlier formed loops moving rearwardly onto the sleeve, a cutter disc extending into said sleeve recess and operable therein from a fixed axis to successively sever the elongated loops transferred onto the sleeve, means for jointly reciprocating the needle and revolving the looper, and other means for revolving the cutter disc.

WILLIAM F. SCHMIEDEL. 

